An idol has been modelled on the Ardhanarishwar concept of half-man, half-woman: Shiva and Durga — the masculine and the feminine in the same body.

Pratyay Gender Trust, an Indian transgender collective, is all set to observe India's first transgender Durga Puja in Kolkata after completing this representation of goddess Durga.

Pratyay Gender Trust

The idol was crafted by China Pal, who is known as the only woman artist of the Kumortuli region. It was a result of the vision of Bhanu Naskar, the secretary of the 12-member Puja committee of trans women set up by Pratyay Gender Trust.

Bhanu Naskar, 55, initiated the process towards organising the Transgender Women's Durga Puja with Monorama Kinnar and other senior transgender members.

They collaborated with the local Puja organising committee, Joy Mitra Street Udyami Yubak Brinda, to create scope for conversations between communities where transgender women and their families live.

"The idol is being modelled on the Ardhanarishwar concept of half-man, half-woman: Shiva and Durga — the masculine and the feminine in the same body," Pratyay Gender Trust told BuzzFeed.

Pratyay Gender Trust

The idea, according to the trust, was to explore the gendered lines while keeping within the traditional framework.

Pratyay Gender Trust

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